The 32nd round of the Optibet Virsliga match was played in Daugavpils against the BFC Daugavpils team. Although we were obviously better on the pitch, only a few scoring opportunities were had, which made it possible to record a goalless draw – 0:0.
Unlike the previous game, Jurgis Kalns decided that Kristers Cudars, Carlos Olses, and Juan Penaloza would start the game in the starting lineup.
In the windy Esplanade stadium, the game started with a very secure control of the ball. Already in the second minute, we started a counterattack, when Leo Gaucho went forward, playing with Juan Penaloza, which was followed by a kick, this time the goalkeeper worked successfully. A few moments later, after a free kick, captain Daniels Balodis had a chance, but the attempt was inaccurate.
The first situation in our penalty area arose at around the 14th minute when Carlos Olses had to catch the ball in his hands from close range. Later on, there was a mistake in the performance of the goalkeeper, fortunately, the ball hit the goalpost. Juan Penaloza demonstrated his capabilities – he was fouled in the penalty area, but the penalty kick did not follow. Around the middle of the half, the ball he sent found its way into the goal, but the referee’s whistle followed, the contact with the opponent was treated as a foul and the goal was not counted.
Later, another rather difficult shot by the Colombian followed, but it was handy for Vladislavs Kurakins. In the remaining time, the performance of BFC Daugavpils was a little more energetic, but Niks Sliede worked brightly on the field and repeatedly proved that nobody could get to the goal through the right side. The half-time ended goalless.
The second half of the game also started in our sign, however, the game was completely different from what we saw in the first part of the duel. The weather began to play an increasingly important role, so the match was quite tense. Likewise, several times after duels, both players of one and the other team were hurt.
The only goal-scoring moment in the second half belonged to the home team. Ricards Zaldovskis caught the defensive line napping with a play on the boundary of an offside. Zaldovskis went on a duel against Olses, who had to leave his own goal to go into the game, in this situation the goalkeeper did his job to save the team.
In the remaining time, the Daugavpils penalty area was occupied several times, but for various reasons, neither Gaucho, Diop, nor Korobenko managed to take advantage of their opportunities. Interruptions in the match in the continuation of the fight did not give the teams the opportunity to create dangerous moments, thus once again the points were divided in half at the Esplanade – one for each team.
Our next game will be played after international break when the team will travel to Salaspils to battle against SK Super Nova Salaspils team.